A THOUSAND NATURAL SHOCKS

By Jacob Marx Rice

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October 2-10, 2026

10-10 44th Ave
Queens, NY 11101
(The Secret Theatre)

By Jacob Marx Rice

Directed by Susan Jane McDonald

Kennedy is doing okay. She’s got her depression under control, she’s got a good job and a loving wife, Laurel. They even decided to have a baby! But when the couple slams headfirst into the unforgiving world of IVF, they will have to navigate the chaos of creating life, the inevitability of pain, and the TikTok teen crashing on their couch.

Written by Jacob Marx Rice, whose work has been produced in over fifteen cities across three continents and honored by the Kennedy Center, the O’Neill, and the Black List, A Thousand Natural Shocks is a funny, moving, and painfully honest look at what happens when creating a family doesn’t go according to plan.

NOTE: This production includes discussions of infertility, IVF, pregnancy, pregnancy loss, depression, suicide, self-harm, and medical procedures.

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CAST

Featuring: Chandler Gregoire (Kennedy), Lesley Miller (Laurel), Megan Piggott* (Molly), Joy Jaensubhakij (Jennifer), Victoria Yap (Doctor)

*Actor appearing courtesy of Actors’ Equity Association. A Thousand Natural Shocks is an Equity-approved showcase.

Our creative team includes: Susan Jane McDonald (Director), Nim Dhillon (Assistant Director), John Orosz (Technical Director), Melody White (Stage Manager), Hayley Garcia Parnell (Lighting Designer), Hayley E. Wallenfeldt (Scenic Designer), Lily Barron (Sound Designer), Deja Anderson Ross (Social Media Coordinator), Josh Lombard (Producer), and Marianne Goodell (Producer).

Chandler Gregoire is a multiracial (Black, Korean, and white) actress from Queens, NY. Chandler began her acting career as a teenager, voicing the cartoon Bratzillaz. She has since narrated eight audiobooks, including the national bestseller Society of Lies. Chandler’s theater credits include Nobody Dies at the Hudson Guild Theater, Hotel Savoy with Performance Space 122, the Samuel French OOB Festival, Sunnyside Impressions by Amy E. Witting, and productions with INTAR Theatre, Medicine Show Theatre, The Shalimar, and Third Eye Theatre Company. Film credits include: iParent, Vedic Nights, Lyra, and Tainted. She holds degrees from Columbia Business School, Yale University, and LaGuardia Arts High School and is represented by Multi-Ethnic Talent. She is very thankful to Jacob Marx Rice and Headwall Theatre Company for bringing her back for the full production of A Thousand Natural Shocks, after she played Kennedy in a reading four years ago.

Lesley Miller is an actress, singer, writer, and director. BA in Theatre from DeSales University and Mountview Theatre School in London. She is thrilled to be working again with Headwall Theatre, where she has performed in Echoes of Ireland, readings of new works by Jacob Marx Rice, and directed the reading of Nighthawks into Light.. Theatre credits: Maria in Twelfth Night, Corinne in the NY premiere of Glow, The Maid in Red Cross, Beatrice in Much Ado.., Mrs. Webb in Our Town, Beverly in Southies, a Samuel French finalist and Cindy in Cosmic , where she was the recipient of the Best Actor award in the Queens Short play Festival. Television and film credits: Bull, The Elevator, Streamside Day Follies, Spider-Man 2, The Wounded Wolf, and sketches on YouTube’s Hatched NYC. Excited about the upcoming short film she co- wrote, and acted in; Benny for The Color Yellow Productions. Love to her family for the endless support. IG:@TheLesleyMiller

Megan Piggott (they/them) is an NYC-based actor and director. Previous credits include: NYC Hal in How to Build a Gate (SoHo Playhouse, New Zealand Fringe Festival), Jeff Skilling in Enron (Atlantic Stage 2), Lysander in A Midsummer Night’s Dream (Resident Dilettante) Regional Picasso at the Lapin Agile (Citadel Theatre), Handle with Care and Paralyzed (Florida Studio Theatre), Pirates of Penzance (Great Plains Theatre). Proud graduate of East Carolina University’s BFA Musical Theater and Atlantic Acting School’s Full-Time Conservatory. See more at www.meganpiggott.com

Joy Jaensubhakij is a NYC-based actor and singer from Singapore. She earned her BA in Theater (Acting Emphasis) from the University of Southern California. Joy is excited to be working with the Headwall Theatre Company team and thanks all of her friends and family for their endless support.

Victoria Yap is an actor and filmmaker based in NYC. Previous film credits include Life Insurance Lottery, Rage Fear Love, and most recently It’s Not An Eating Disorder (Best Actress, Rohip Film Festival) Some of her theatre credits include Forgiven (Classical Theatre Company) and The Journey of Bishop Collin (The MATCH Theater). Victoria is also a company member of Interactive Advocacy, an organization which teaches servicemen and women in the military about mental health and sexual assault awareness through drama and storytelling. This is her first stage performance in New York, and she’s excited to join this talented and awesome cast. Enjoy the show! IG: @victoriajyap  www.victoriajyap.com

*Equity member appearing with permission of Actors’ Equity Association without benefit of an equity contract in this Off-Off Broadway production. An Equity Approved Showcase.

CREATIVE

Jacob Marx Rice has had plays produced in over fifteen cities across three continents, won the Jean Kennedy Smith Award from the Kennedy Center, been nominated for four Off West End Awards, and been published by Bloomsbury/Methuen. His plays have been produced and developed at theaters including The Eugene O’Neill Theatre Center, The Finborough Theatre in London, Actors Theatre of Louisville, The Flea Theater, EST, and Atlantic Theatre Stage 2.  His screenplays have been listed on the Annual Black List and won a Sloan Science Screenwriting Award, and he is currently in development with Anonymous Content. He is a proud resident of Queens.

Susan graduated magna cum laude from the University of Southern California (USC) with a B.A. in Drama. She studied with Sanford Meisner for two years at the Neighborhood Playhouse School of Theatre in New York City. While a member of the Network Theatre Company in NYC, she directed the original plays, Dragons and Squid, both of which were finalists for Best Play. She’s taught acting classes to young students and adults, directing them in theatrical productions for over 20 years. In addition to directing, Susan is an award-winning actress (AEA, SAG/AFTRA) and writer. Her web series, Irrelevant, is currently in production. She’s thrilled to be working with the Headwall Theatre Company on Jacob Marx Rice’s beautiful play, A Thousand Natural Shocks.

Josh Lombard is an Astoria based director, producer, editor and photographer. Select theater credits: The Pillowman by Martin McDonagh (Headwall Theatre Company,) #Crazyland by Andrew Marvel (Headwall Theatre Company,) Bridal Shower by Andrew Marvel (Fresh Fruit Festival), Ink (Samuel French Festival), Unleashed by Emmet McConnell (HB Playwrights Theatre), Fire by Rita Marchelya (HB Studios), Asi Wind: Close Up by Asi Wind (Wind Production), Co-director: Concert of the Mind (Conjuring Arts & Wind Productions); Producer: 1 in 4 (Headwall Theatre Company). Besides theater, he has also worked on numerous Films, commercials, and TV projects.

Marianne Goodell is an actor and producer and the Managing Director of Headwall and fully supports our mission to get out of our comfort zone and try a new role. She recently performed in Be a Good Little Widow at The Chain Theatre, under the direction of her son George, and in the hilarious farce POTUS with City Gate Productions in Queens. She appears in the independent film Gazer that premiered at Cannes in 2024 and will be released in theaters across the US in February 2025. She is represented by UGA Talent. www.marianne-goodell.com

John Orosz serves as Technical Director on all Headwall Productions. Lighting Design – Absolution, The Other Place, Hunting and Gathering, Echoes of Ireland, Other Desert Cities, #Crazyland, 1 in 4, Funny, The Pillowman.  Sound Design – Absolution, The Other Place, Hunting and Gathering, Echoes of Ireland, Other Desert Cities. Video Production – Echoes of Ireland (Live Stream), Separated (Live Stream), The Other Place (Graphics and Projection).

Hayley E. Wallenfeldt is a Chicago-born, New York-based scenic designer and artist. Their recent credits include Malapert Love (the TANK); The Tin Angel (Teatro Grattacielo); Passion (Blank Theatre); The Receptionist (Centenary Stage Company); JerseyBoys, Waitress, and Matilda (Quincy Community Theatre); Love and War (The Glimmerglass Festival); and Be Mean to Me (Northwestern University). She was the 2025 recipient of the USITT Scenic Design Award & a recipient of the 2025 Robert L.B. Tobin Director-Designer Prize. Hayley received their degree in design and archaeology from Northwestern University. hayleyewallenfeldt.com @hew_scenic

Hayley Garcia Parnell (they/she) is a nonbinary, Chicana Lighting Designer from Colorado, currently based in NYC. They are a resident artist with New Light Theatre Project. Credits include New York: This is Government, Friends With Amenities (59E59), Blood Orange (ART NY), The Passion According to Janair (Group.BR at HERE Arts Center), Touch (East Village Basement), Pass Over (14th St Y), Valley of the Shadow (WP Theatre); Regional: Dracula, The Last Five Years (Princeton Summer Theatre), Little Women, Misery, Sanctuary City, Ms. Holmes & Ms. Watson #2B (Bloomsburg Theatre Ensemble). hayleygarciaparnell.com

Lily Rose Barron (she/they) is a theatre artist, sound maker, and creative technologist. She is incredibly excited to be working with this wonderful team on A Thousand Natural Shocks. Recent credits include: Sound Design & Music Composition: Cinderella and Frankenstein’s Monster are Dead (Edinburgh/Brighton Fringe), Search for What I Left (The Tank), Rhinoceros (Tisch Drama Stage), The Velveteen Rabbit (Hangar Theatre), The Duck (Tisch Drama Stage). Projection Design; She Is Risen (The Tank), [Greater Than Equal To] (Target Margin), Machine / Angel / Sickness (Vino), The World Under the Magnifying Glass (PHTS). lilyrosebarron.com // @the_lily_rose

Melody White graduated from Lafayette College with a BFA in Theater. Since graduation, they have performed with Off-Broadway and regional theaters. They have also worked administrative positions, such as internships for Broadway League and Chi Talent Management, as well as production team positions, recently Music Directing at Rodeph Sholom and Kidz Theater. In their free time, they release original music under the artist name, Melody Matthews. They are incredibly excited to return for their second production as Stage Manager with Headwall.  -Insta: @matthewsmelodyy

OUR SUPPORTERS

This organization is funded in part by the Howard Gilman Foundation administered by Flushing Town Hall.

Special thanks to Materials for the Arts for their support of this production.